I Will Never Forget You
by CookieCandy17
Summary: How Atticus met his wife. R&R.


Disclaimer: All of the characters you recognize (Atticus, Jack, Mr. Buford,) belong to Harper Lee. All of the ones you don't recognize are mine, especially Elizabeth. Technically Elizabeth semi-belongs to Harper Lee, but because there was so little written about Scout and Jem's mother I consider her fair game.

Enjoy. Please review and let me know what you think. Criticism is welcome.

**Prologue**

Elizabeth Louise Graham, ( known as, "Eliza", to close friends and relatives,) was walking behind her uncle, Mr. Buford's house when she noticed the dock. It sat on the Alabama River between the Buford propriety and Finch's Landing. The river looked so pretty at this time of day, and even though she knew she really ought not walk around outside in her white Sunday dress, she could not resist going over to the dock to get a closer look. She looked around, and once she was satisfied that no one was watching she made her way over.

The dock was simply several planks of wood attached together floating on buoy, and Eliza assumed that it was probably used mostly to sunbathe on and jump off of into the water. Taking a deep breath of the clean, sweet air she admired the view of the trees across the river and how the sunlight shimmered on the water. The sight was breath taking. She was convinced that there was no prettier place on Earth than Alabama in the summer time.

Suddenly, a flash of silver in the water caught her eye. She leaned a bit closer to the water, and saw it was a fish. She could not see it very well from where she was standing, so she moved closer to the edge and leaned over a bit farther. Just then the fish jumped out of the water with a splash. Startled, Eliza shrieked, then promptly slipped and fell into the water.

* * *

Atticus and Jack Finch were walking behind Finch's Landing enjoying a few precious moments to themselves before they would be required to attend church with the entire Finch family. Atticus had been busy getting his career as a lawyer started, and Jack had been away in Boston studying medicine. Jack was a good ten years younger than Atticus, and Atticus was putting most of the money he earned towards his little brother's education. Even though there was a fairly large gap in their ages, they had always been close. The two brothers had spent little time at Finch's Landing over the past few years, and their families missed them greatly. They hadn't been let alone since they arrived at the beginning of the week.

Jack was in the process of describing the University he was attending in Boston.

"Atticus," he said, "You would have felt that you had died and gone to heaven at the library they have. The entire room is just wall to wall books, and they aren't just books on medicine. They have any genre and topic imaginable. Heck, there were even a couple on law!"

Atticus grinned, pushing his glasses up his nose. "And I bet you put that library to good use, didn't ya Jack?"

Jack smiled sheepishly. While Atticus read just as naturally as he breathed, Jack was not so keen. It wasn't that he couldn't, he read just fine, he just rathered to experience things instead of reading about them. He was too energetic of a person to just sit down and read.

"Sorry to say I hardly did it justice. Every time I passed it I thought about you, though."

Just then a loud shriek pierced the air, followed by a, "splash". The two men frowned at each other.

"Sounded like it was comin' from the dock."

They both ran towards the river, but when they reached the dock no one was in sight. Jack walked onto the dock and looked around. He looked into the water, and in one spot to his right he noticed a white tint amongst the sky blue. His eyes widened in horror.

"Atticus, there's someone in the water!"

Before he had even finished his sentence Atticus was already removing his suit jacket and vest. In one fluid motion his glasses were off and lying on his jacket. He then dived into the water.

Seconds later he emerged with a bundle of white lace and brown hair in his arms. Together the two men hauled the girl out of the water and onto the dock. Jack immediately started putting his medical knowledge to use to revive her. Within a minute the girl was coughing up water and slowly coming back to consciousness. She didn't look a day older than sixteen. Her long hair was too wet to be able to determine the exact color, but it looked to be a dark brown or red. She had pale skin the color of porcelain, and full pink lips. She had on a nice white dress with a pink sash tied around her waist, and Atticus imagined she was dressed for church. When her eyes fluttered open, Atticus saw that they were a bright green. They were the prettiest green eyes he had ever seen.

Her gaze was unfocused, but she was slowly coming to her senses. As Atticus sat her up and supported her with one arm, she moaned and put a hand to her head.

"Miss, can you hear me?" Jack asked her gently, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder.

She moaned again. "Yes..."

"Good. My name is Jack, and this here is Atticus," he said, pointing to himself then to his brother.

She acknowledged them with a nod.

"Do you feel alright? Nothing feel broken or anything?"

She swallowed, and nodded slightly. "Yes, I believe I'm alright."

Jack smiled. "Excellent. Now, if you don't mind me asking, how exactly did you end up in the water?"

The girl frowned slightly. Her eyes were focused now, but she appeared to be in a daze.

"The water?"

Atticus grinned wryly. "We just fished you outta there. You managed to cough up half the Alabama river in the process!"

The girl giggled slightly, then she appeared to be thinking. Suddenly, a look of realization dawned across her features.

"Oh! Now I remember! I was walkin' along behind my uncle, Mr. Buford's house. I'm visitin' him with my aunt and my cousin. We're from Montgomery. Anyways, I was walking along when I saw this lovely dock. I wanted to get a closer look at the river so I came over. While I was standin' admiring the view I saw a fish. I leaned over to get a closer look, then the darn thing jumped up and startled me. I slipped and fell in!" She furrowed her brow for a moment, then added, "If it wasn't for this dress I could have got myself out just fine. The darn thing was so heavy it weighed me down clear to the bottom!"

Atticus and Jack chuckled. "Well, lucky for you, we happened to be passing by."

Elizabeth looked at the two men. They both had dark hair that was almost black, and they had similar features. She decided they must be related. Although they were both very handsome, and the younger one, Jack, appeared to by very nice, she couldn't help but feel drawn to Atticus. His gaze was intense, but it conveyed a certain kindness. For some reason she got the impression that this man was just naturally kind to everyone.

Just then, the voices of two women pierced through the air, and they appeared at the top of the yard. They were dressed in their Sunday dresses complete with hats and parasols. When they noticed the group on the dock their expressions changed from ones of annoyance to horror, and they all but ran to the dock, struggling with their dresses and parasols.

"Elizabeth Louise Graham, what on earth happened?!"

Elizabeth sighed, then told them her tale of how she was overcome by her curiosity, then slipped and fell in the river.

"...But luckily for me, these two fine gentlemen heard my shriek and rescued me. If it weren't for them, I would most certainly have drowned!"

The older of the two women pursed her lips together. She was dressed in fine clothes and appeared to be very prim and proper. She held herself with the regality that one can only learn through hours worth of lessons in etiquette. She narrowed her eyes in disapproval.

"Elizabeth, I honestly have no idea from where you inherited such clumsiness!"

Elizabeth smiled sheepishly. "I'm sorry, Auntie."

The woman's eyes softened, and she smiled affectionately.

"I'm just glad you're alright."

The younger woman turned to Atticus and Jack. She was dressed in similar clothes as the older woman, but didn't appear to be quite as austere. There were a lot of similarities in her appearance as Elizabeth's.

She smiled gratefully.

"Thank you so much for rescuing my dear cousin. If you two hadn't of happened by, lord knows what could have happened..."

Atticus nodded to show he accepted her thanks.

Just as the three women were about to leave, Elizabeth turned to Atticus and Jack.

"Thank you, both, for saving me."

Atticus smiled, and Jack grinned.

"It was our pleasure, Miss."

Before she could turn around and leave, Atticus stopped her, an expression of mock seriousness on his face.

"Miss Elizabeth, next time you decide to look at fish off the side of a dock, stay clear of the edge."

Elizabeth grinned, then ran to catch up with her aunt and cousin, who were waiting for her at the top of the yard. When she reached the top of the yard, she turned around and waved.

"I'll never forget you!" she called out.

The two men waved back and stood there watching her go. Jack looked down at his clothes, then grinned.

"I'm soaked to the bone," he remarked cheerfully. "I guess I'll go back to the house and change. Everyone is probably wonderin' where we are!"

Atticus smiled. "I bet. You go on up, I'll be there in a minute."

Atticus watched Jack go, then he sighed. He stooped down to retrieve his jacket and glasses. As he was slipping them on his face, he noticed something pink out of the corner of his eye. He stooped down and picked it up. It was a hair ribbon, and it must of fell out of Elizabeth's hair when he pulled her out of the water. He stood up and was about to call after her, but she was no where in sight. He fingered the ribbon for a moment, then put it in his pocket. He turned around, and made his way up to the house.

A/N: I am planning on making this story about novel length, but I may very well change my mind. If no one likes it, it will just be a short. Review and let me know what you think.

BTW: This story does have a plot, and I intend to make it go with TKAM as best as I can. Bear with me.


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